Kung Pao Chicken has been an obsession of mine for several years - I even considered writing a cookbook called Kung Pao Kitchen - and I finally found a good recipe for it. Obviously there are tons of regional variations of this classic Chinese dish, and this actually isn’t my favorite version (no Sichuan peppercorn - huge bummer), but it’s by far the best I’ve made with ingredients which are readily available in most US supermarkets. It really tastes like something you might find in an American Chinese restaurant, like, a good one too. I’ve made it probably 8 times in the past two months, and I’m really happy with the little tweaks and improvements I’ve made over that time. I made it for dinner tonight actually, and I couldn’t think of any way to make it better, which almost never happens.
The addition of roasted cauliflower is the key here, even though it makes the dish strictly non-traditional, but way better in my opinion. The roasting itself is even unusual in Chinese cuisine, which favors steaming or pan frying (which traditionally helps to maintain the crispness of the veggie without marring its flavor at all by browning), but in this case it contributes to the nuttiness of the dish, which is reinforced by the peanuts and sesame oil. It’s a really balanced dish, but it would be way to sweet without the cauliflower. The honey mixes with the sambal subtly and harmoniously, celery and peanuts provide great pops of crunch, and the bell pepper and rice vinegar add a slight zing to every bite. Served with white rice, you can’t go wrong!
DISCLAIMER: This recipe does involve a lot of kitchen equipment and tools. I also like to set up all of my components before starting, so there are a lot of preparatory steps in the recipe. Read it through a couple times, make sure you have all of the tools you need (or at least some equivalent), and be as organized as you can while cooking everything. There are a lot of moving pieces, but if you prepare yourself well, you’ll be sure to have a banging dish at the end.
Butter Count: None - It’s Chinese food
INGREDIENTS:
32 oz cauliflower florets
6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into ~1-inch cubes
5 Tbsp soy sauce, divided
1/4 cup plus 3 tsp corn starch, divided
1/2 tsp kosher salt
5 Tbsp olive oil, divided
3 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp black sesame oil
4 tsp rice vinegar
2 tsp sambal oelek
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 Tbsp dry roasted, salted peanuts, coarsely chopped
4 stalks celery, thinly sliced crosswise into halfmoons
2/3 cups green onions, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 425F.
Slice the cauliflower florets into quarters. Place them on a baking sheet and pour 3 Tbsp of oil over them Toss to fully coat. Bake at 425F for 30 minutes.
While the cauliflower cooks, place the chicken in a gallon-sized zip-lock bag. Add 1 Tbsp of soy sauce to the bag. Mostly seal the bag, then depress it to let out the air, and seal it completely. Squish the chicken up with your hands so that the soy sauce is in contact with all of the chicken. Leave the chicken to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
While the chicken marinates, place 1/4 cup of cornstarch in a shallow casserole dish, and mix the salt in.
Add one Tbsp of oil to a frying pan, and add the remaining Tbsp of oil to a second frying pan. Place them over the largest burners on the stove, but don’t light them yet.
Have a large, empty wok ready for later when all of the ingredients are combined together.
In a glass bowl, whisk together the remaining 4 Tbsp of soy sauce, 3 tsp of cornstarch, honey, black sesame oil, rice vinegar, sambal oelek, and garlic until well combined.
When the cauliflower is finished and fully tender, remove it from the oven and leave it on the baking tray.
Transfer the chicken to the cornstarch/salt mixture. Use tongs to mix it well so that every chicken cube is coated in cornstarch. It will be a little slimy, but that’s ok.
Heat the two oiled pans over medium heat for about 1 minute. Add half of the chicken to each pan and spread it out, separating the cubes as much as possible. Heat 13 minutes, flipping halfway through, separating the cubes further if needed.
When the chicken is finished, combine it all in one of the pans and set the empty pan aside.
Place the empty wok over the large burner and heat over medium heat.
Add all of the chicken and cauliflower to the wok.
Give the sauce mixture a quick whisk, then use a rubber spatula to pour all of it into the wok. Immediately turn off the heat and stir the mixture thoroughly so the sauce doesn’t coagulate or burn.
Toss in the peanuts, celery, green onions, and red bell pepper.
Serve over rice!